Beomeosa, Busan, South Korea

Posted on November 19th, 2013 under Korea. Tags: bamboo, beomeosa, busan, Nikon AF-S VR Zoom-NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED Telephoto Lens, Nikon D600. Comments Off on Old Korean ladies climbing through the bamboo

Fukuoka hawk statue

The inscription under this statue says something about a hawk which rode on a ship in 1827 for 90 days before landing in Fukuoka. I’m not sure what the 1795-1877 signifies. In any event, the local baseball team in Fukuoka are the Hawks so maybe this story had something to do with their name.

The building in the background on the left is the Hilton Fukuoka Sea Hawk Hotel.

Posted on November 18th, 2013 under Japan. Tags: fukuoka, Hilton Fukuoka Sea Hawk, Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S NIKKOR G ED N, Nikon D600. Comments Off on Fukuoka Hawk

Oregon Ducks Cheerleaders

For some reason, whenever I post photos of Oregon Ducks Cheerleaders my site traffic jumps. What’s up with that?

Today’s photo is from yesterday’s game at Autzen Stadium in Eugene.

Posted on November 17th, 2013 under Oregon. Tags: AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II, cheerleaders, eugene, Nikon D600, people. Comments Off on University of Oregon Cheerleaders

Giant ema pavilion (絵馬堂) @ Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine (太宰府天満宮)

My retired history professor guide who took me to Dazaifu to check out Tenmangu pointed to the ceiling of this pavilion on the grounds and asked me if I knew what these items were. I did not. He then educated me on the history of the ema that are so common at shrines in Japan.

Currently, there are little wooden plaques (ema) that can be purchased for a few hundred yen to write your wishes on. Long ago, you could make a really large ema and pay a shrine to have your ema hung there. These giant ema at Tenmangu are hundreds of years old and still going strong. The owners, long since dead, have really gotten their money’s worth.

Posted on November 15th, 2013 under Japan. Tags: Dazaifu Tenman-gu 太宰府天満宮, ema, fukuoka, Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S NIKKOR G ED N, Nikon D600. Comments Off on Historical, full-size ema

View of the west from above Mount Shasta

A while back I posted a photo of Mt. Shasta from the air on my way back to Ashland from Oakland, California in a private plane. Today’s photo is of the view out my right-side, passenger window on the way down to Oakland.

Posted on November 14th, 2013 under Other. Tags: aerial photography, california, Nikon AF-S VR Zoom-NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED Telephoto Lens, Nikon D600. Comments Off on Aerial view looking west from Mt. Shasta